The political landscape has tilted in Iowa since Michele Bachmann last visited the state. Suddenly, her climb to prominence in the Iowa caucuses doesn’t seem quite so steep.

Mike Huckabee’s decision to ditch the 2012 dance leaves the Minnesota congresswoman well positioned to step into the void.

Asked about her view of the field since Huckabee and Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels have taken a pass, Bachmann says her Facebook page has “lit up” and donations have increased dramatically.

That Huckabee won’t seek to repeat his 2008 caucus victory is huge for Bachmann. While candidates like fellow Minnesotan Tim Pawlenty can credibly court evangelicals and tea party affiliates, Bachmann is considered a warrior for the cause. Her home-school experience and dozens of foster kids gives her a unique appeal to the conservative home-school network that helped boost Huckabee’s candidacy in 2008.

Bachmann’s prowess at online fundraising means she would start with far more resources than Huckabee did four years ago. She’s still not well-known, but she’s had more national exposure than Huck did at this stage of the 2008 campaign. Plus, she’s an Iowa native.

Bachmann would face some of the same challenges that Huckabee did in showing how she could be viable beyond Iowa. Huckabee, as a former Arkansas governor, had more executive experience, and his amiable persona helped him attract support beyond the ranks of evangelicals. Bachmann will have to persuade voters that her small-business experience stacks up against the ex-governors and big-company CEOs in the race.

But her speech in Iowa today is not, as clever headline writers have suggested, Bachmann’s turn in overdrive. She said in an interview Wednesday she is sticking to her plan to wait another couple of weeks before making an official announcement. Update: Bachmann has postponed her Iowa trip because of votes in Congress.

“We want to make sure that what we are doing is deliberate and focused,” she told me. ”We want to be prudent and responsible in the decisions that we are making. So we’ve got our team together, and we’re trying to lay a well-grounded plan.”

That may disappoint some Iowa supporters who were hoping she would make it official during her speech tonight at a Polk County Republican fundraiser. But Bachmann has made it clear that she will put heavy focus on Iowa, including the August straw poll.

Expect her to emphasize that point heavily on the eve of Mitt Romney’s first appearance of the year in the Hawkeye state. Romney’s absence from Iowa has continued to fuel questions about how much time and attention he is willing to devote to the state where he was runner-up in 2008.

One potential landmine for Bachmann is Sarah Palin’s renewed overture toward a potential candidacy. Bachmann’s not a clone of the former Alaska governor, but she would face continual comparisons that could make it tougher to establish herself with voters.

Bachmann’s mouth runs faster than her brain at times, giving rise to gaffes that expose her, like Palin, to criticism that she is unprepared. She will need to exercise greater message discipline while still projecting the sort of candor that Iowa voters respect.

The Minnesotan, however, has more poise and a thicker skin in dealing with the mainstream media than Palin has shown. She lacks the baggage that Palin carries from the 2008 campaign and her resignation from the Alaska governorship. And Bachmann has said she will focus heavily on Iowa, including participation in the August straw poll. At this stage, it’s easier to imagine Bachmann as a caucus contender.